Cultrek IV: A New Hope
by ACE Albert
Summary: What happens if the United Federation of Planets can realize its true potential? How would other galaxies and organizations be affected? Find out in CULTREK IV: A NEW HOPE, starring the United Culture of People!
1. Chapter 1

**CULTREK IV: A NEW HOPE**

**Standard Disclaimers Apply.**

_**INTRODUCTION**_

**AUTHORS: ACE Albert and andrewjameswilliams**

**Historical Note**

_**M**ost historians agree that the constituent members of the former United Federation of Planets could not have survived the last eighty years if it were not for the galactic agreement of twenty two ninety four that dissolved the space-faring governments of the Milky Way Galaxy and established the United Culture of People in its stead. By the twenty third century we were well aware of just how pitifully inadequate Starfleet was - in spite of the best efforts of the Federation and of courageous Captains such as the publicly renowned James Tiberius Kirk - in defending us against both known and then-unknown aggressors in the Milky Way Galaxy. However despite our best efforts we were unable to achieve a feasible method of rendering Starfleet capable of defending the Federation acceptably. So we like the Romulan Star Empire and the Klingon Imperial Empire instead chose to believe that if we did not provoke these aggressive races, they would not choose to precipitate hostile actions against us; we reasoned that there would be many other species in the galaxy, besides us, that these aggressors would have more cause to war against. We sank into complacency, safe in our own ignorance and delusions._

_Little did we realize just how wrong we were. We later realized that even at that time, preparations were being made by powerful hostile races including the parasitic Ciona Imperixe and the mindless Borg Collective to force the Federation into a fate worse than death: assimilation. And the Dominion also was preparing to act decisively to neutralize the Federation, and the rest of the ABQ governments, before we would become too powerful for them to handle._

_It has only been by an extreme stroke of luck that we have not only survived the last eighty years, but indeed are now part of an organization much greater than anything we could have ever imagined. However with the initiation of efforts to explore and colonize different galaxies and realities I cannot help but feel that we are once again in the position the former United Federation of Planets was in in the twenty third century, and that once we start exploring in the greater multiverse we will encounter aggressors that will threaten our very existence. However we cannot count on ignorance and delusions to reassure ourselves as we mistakenly did in the twenty third century - nor can we count on the belief that all sufficiently advanced species will be mature enough to shun aggressive actions and warfare, a belief which was proven wrong in the twenty second century when we thought 'sufficiently advanced' meant interstellar-capable species; I fear that we will find this belief wrong yet again when we re-define 'sufficiently advanced' as meaning intergalactic or interdimensional-capable species - our luck was the only reason we survived then and I for one am not about to count on that extraordinary luck again. I realize that the only way we can be even slightly safer, is to explore aggressively so we can find and prepare for potential threats before they notice and destroy us first. Indeed there might well be no way to adequately prepare for what is out there but we however are resolute and we will try._  
**Picard - Captain, Galactic Patrol, LRE _Enterprise_  
Year-2376**

**CONFIDENTIAL  
From: Galactic Patrol Command  
To: Captain Jean-Luc Picard, LRE _Enterprise_  
Technical Data and Mission 001 Information for Exploratory Fleet to Grand Unified Timespace (GUT) J-25/001/00101  
(Galaxy J-25, Universe 001, TimeGrid 00101)**

**NOTICE: UT (Universe/TimeGrid) Dislocation Prohibited Except Under Level Omega-One Conditions**

**Task Force**

LRE (2)  
VAS (2)  
VFP (10)  
VLR (100)  
DD (50,000)

No contact with other GP forces except in cases of extreme emergencies, for 5 years

**LRE CLASS ENHANCED DETERRENCE EXPLORER**

Class:  
Long-Range Explorer

Type:  
Self-Sustaining Long-Range Exploration and Science Vessel

Hull Life:  
1000 years

Refit Minor:  
5 years

Refit Major:  
50 years

Propulsion:  
FTL: GUT (grand unified timespace drive), QSD (quantum slipstream drive)  
STL: Five Multitranspulse Engines

Sensors:  
Multidimensional

Ground Forces:  
10,000 Defensive Drones

Specific Weapons (in addition to standard VFP specs):  
20 Remote Forced Quantum Singularity Projectors  
2 Extra-Dimensional Energy Impellers

Additional Defense (in addition to standard VFP specs):  
2 Dimensional Cloak Generators

In recognition of the need for long-range exploration vessels capable of operating alone for extended periods of time, Galactic Patrol and the United Culture of People commissioned the class of Long Range Explorer vessels to supplement the existing class of Very Long Range (VLR) explorers. Where the VLR class was basically a hulk with GUT engines, with a weak hull and basically nonexistent offense and defense capabilities, GP Command recognized that in exploration of unknown territories, unexpected situations may occur which would require a GP vessel to be able to defend itself, often in numerically disadvantageous situations. The LRE class addressed this need in terms of having powerful offensive and defensive systems to allow it to, if/when necessary, hold off, alone, possible deadly and numerically superior enemies. Although it is categorized as an exploration vessel the LRE class is one of the most powerful starships in the Galactic Patrol, with only dedicated warships being more powerful. Also the LRE class was designed with a much stronger hull and was made to be self-sustaining for at least 5 years and at most 50 years, allowing its use in many additional situations which the VLR class was incapable of handling.

**Prologue**

**A**lthough the basic technology had been used for quite a few centuries by one of the (now) senior members of United Culture of People, it had only been in the past few decades that the final perfections had been made to make grand unified timespace drive a viable tool for the rest of the UCP and the Galactic Patrol fleet. GUT basically offered the ability to take a ship to velocities capable of rapid inter-galactic travel. This was besides its ability to allow interdimensional and temporal travel at will, but the use of either of these had been restricted to exceptional circumstances only by the UCP Council until further notice, so that the Galactic Patrol could focus on exploring, studying, and mapping their own Universe and TimeGrid first. Of course although the theory behind GUT drive was well understood and indeed more primitive versions had been used by the People for centuries before the formation of the UCP, theories were one thing and reality another hence why it had taken so long to enable modern GUT technology to be fitted to Patrol starships. Now it was, and the possibilities were enormous. The UCP was on the brink of a revolution, one that would fundamentally change many things and perhaps even push civilizations to whole new levels. Picard and the others selected for the upcoming mission to Grand Unified Timespace J-25/001/00101 - one of the first missions of the Galactic Patrol beyond the borders of the Milky Way Galaxy and its companion dwarf galaxies - would be at the forefront of the revolution, taking the UCP's first steps where no people had trod before.

For years, the Culture had planned a mission to space beyond the visible universe. The trip had been a certainty ever since it was known that GUT drive was nearing completion. And now the time had come to see the dream come true. Picard's small fleet of explorers would proceed to the J-25 galaxy, a galaxy beyond the visible light barrier and whose existence previously had only been theoretical; they would travel millions of light years in mere seconds. Once there, the ships would design and implement, based on the shape, size, and other properties of Galaxy J-25, a designated course and begin to systematically map the galaxy.

Picard sincerely hoped that the space-faring civilizations in J-25 turned out to be more mature and friendly than the civilizations in the Milky Way eighty years ago were. The Council hoped so too, but Picard was glad that they were taking no chances. A second fleet consisting of 5 LRE's, 10 VLR's, 100 GSV's, and 50 ROU's would be accompanying them to the outskirts of J-25; the stated mission of this second fleet was to map the local intergalactic space between J-25 and the galaxies near it, but both Picard and the Council knew that the true reason for the presence and composition of this second fleet was to provide emergency back-up in case one of his ships ran into a hostile and powerful threat that they couldn't handle alone and yet which needed to be handled. Picard shuddered at the thought; the United Culture of Planets was just as an organization taking its first steps beyond the Milky Way and its satellite galaxies, and the last thing he or anyone else in the Galactic Patrol wanted was a confrontation with an advanced, hostile species in a galaxy beyond the visible universe. Still, he felt better that the person leading the second fleet was Special Section Agent Maxwell, one of his best and most trusted friends.

Special Section, Picard mused. There was an interesting organization. In the days of the now-defunct United Federation of Planets, there had existed a curious semi-independent organization within the UFP known as "Section 31," which was a ruthless, immoral surveillance and spying organization that would do anything to ensure the survival of the UFP. It was a good idea, Picard mused, but somewhere down the line since S31 was founded, the implementation had become a bit lacking. When the Galactic Accords were signed, however, Section 31, and their counterparts in other agencies such as the Tal'Shiar and the Obsidian Order, to name two, had been united with other spying and special circumstances outfits across the Milky Way Galaxy and forged into a moral, altruistic, dedicated, and highly trained special-forces unit called the Special Section that was optimized to handle new, unexpected, or previously unencountered/un-planned for situations. Picard shuddered again at the thought of Section 31 and some of the tactics it had used. He sure was glad for the existence of the Special Section in its stead these days. One of the long list of things he had to thank the UCP for, he silently decided.

Just then, Picard's reverie was interrupted by a chime at his ready room door, to which he automatically stated "Come." His first officer, Commander Quinn, entered. "The fleet is ready to depart for GUT J-25/001/00101, Captain," he stated. Picard smiled and followed his First Officer back out to the bridge. "Signal the other ships and establish a communications channel," he ordered. Taking a deep breath, Picard prepared to deliver an inspirational speech to his fleet and give the command to boldly go forth and make history...

**A**lpha Quadrant Representative Sosko was feeling better than he had felt in a long time. The erstwhile Klingon was proud to be part of a Council with honor, a Council that was willing to fight. In the old days the Klingon Imperial Empire had been growing soft, Sosko reminisced, they had been influenced slowly but surely by their neighbors the United Federation of Planets. In the old days Sosko had been a Klingon that respected and indeed lauded most of the ideals of the UFP, but the Federationers' extreme aversion to combat, and more importantly their self-propagated delusions of peace and goodwill with the rest of the galaxy, had often irritated him to no end. Kirk was an exception, a figure widely respected even among Klingons of that time, but most Federationers of that era were not like Kirk, especially not the Federation Council. The Klingons too had changed since the time of the Klingon Imperial Empire, Sosko remembered. At that time the Klingons considered that the highest honor a Klingon could display was to go forth and die in glorious battle, so as to go to Sto'Vo'Kor. They were, fortunately, enlightened by Culture, which showed them that the best way of achieving glory was not to expire in battle, but to live, as long as one wished, so that even more glory could be sought and obtained. They also realized that seeking battle just for the sake of seeking battle or glory was no honor, but fighting battles that needed to be fought was one of the most honorable and glorious acts - along with going boldly forth into the unknown, seeking knowledge and adventure - a Klingon could perform. Sosko shuddered rather elaborately. He could not even comprehend how the Klingons as a race had survived in those dark ages that had lasted centuries, when all they had wanted and aspired to do was to go forth and die in a blaze of "glorious" battle, as soon as possible. Sosko was indeed most grateful for the Enlightenment, as it was generally known, of the Klingons.

Thinking further, Sosko started laughing and he laughed long and hard. Who would have ever thought that a Klingon like Sosko would have ever chosen a Romulan as his mate?

**D**elta Quadrant Representative Neelix was rather shocked when the channel opened and he beheld the visage of his old friend Sosko, laughing uncontrollably and nearly doubled over with laughter.

"What?!" demanded Neelix with mock severity, raising an eyebrow in a very Vulcan gesture. "Is there something I should be aware of?!"

Sosko chuckled. "Just thinking about the old times, Neelix," he replied.

"Ah," said Neelix with feeling. "Those were the times, weren't they," he said, chuckling as his own memories from the past rose up.

"Yes, indeed," rumbled Sosko.

"But," said Sosko, "I presume there is more reason to your call then to check up with an old friend?"

"Yes, indeed, there is," said Neelix, getting his own laughter under control. "The Second Fleet to Galaxy J-25 is just getting ready to depart," he continued. "You and I are to arrive at -" here he uploaded coordinates to Sosko's screen - "to see them off and wish them an enjoyable and adventurous journey."

"Indeed," rumbled the Klingon, "I have been awaiting that for quite some time. Just imagine, a whole new galaxy full of glory and wonder just waiting to be uncovered!"

"Absolutely," stated Neelix with feeling. "With the perfected GUT drive, the whole universe is now right at our fingertips!"

"Today is a good day to live!" roared Sosko passionately.

"Today is a great time to be alive!" replied Neelix with equal fervor. "I will see you at the send-off in 2 hours," he concluded.

"Until then," said Sosko, saluting his long-time friend and closing the channel. 2 hours, he mused. It was just enough time to prepare a speech properly befitting such a glorious quest.

**TBC… in CHAPTER 1: The Stage is Set**


	2. Chapter 2

**CULTREK IV: A NEW HOPE  
**

**Standard Disclaimers Apply.**

**_CHAPTER I: The Stage is Set_**

**AUTHORS: ACE Albert, andrewjameswilliams, and F-302 Pilot**

**C**olonel Jack O'Neill, the forty-four year old commander of the StarGate Alliance's Explorer Class Carrier _USS Event Horizon_ and the clone of the original General Jonathan (Jack) O'Neill (now eighty-three years old and retired) was sitting around with his feet propped up on the corner of his desk, musing over just how far the Tau'ri – or more specifically, the United States of America and its few StarGate Alliance partners – had come in the last thirty-nine years.

_When the StarGate was first successfully activated in 1994, it was the biggest secret the United States of America had ever had. It was considered as a national treasure, not to be shared with any other nation on Earth. All knowledge gathered as a consequence of use of the StarGate over the years was American property, hard-earned by the lives and toil of American soldiers and scientists._

_Despite the realization of the dangers Earth faced and the other national powers and trade blocs on Earth starting to question strange occurrences, the United States chose not to disclose the existence of the StarGate.  
_

_Several times America had come close to disclosing the StarGate, but each time the impending disaster was averted, starting with the attack by the Goa'uld Apophis with two Ha'Tak Class Motherships in June 1998._

At the thought of this issue, Colonel O'Neill chuckled. There were times when O'Neill thought that disclosure early on might not have been such a bad thing after all; disclosure would have seriously disrupted the plans of various powerful and hostile factions – including, memorably, the National Intelligence Directorate (NID) – that had tried, repeatedly and sometimes almost successfully, to seize control of StarGate Command over the years. And in O'Neill's book, anything that would significantly hamper the plans of factions such as the NID had got to be a good thing. Additionally, disclosure would have made it easier for Earth to defend itself against the many hostile external threats, most notably the Goa'uld. On the other hand, there were of course downsides to disclosure. Those in charge decided that the upsides and downsides balanced out in such a way that disclosure was unwarranted. The balance had apparently continued to hold over the years, such that even now, in 2033, the existence of the StarGate had _still_ not been disclosed. The Colonel often mused over whether disclosure now would be a good or a bad thing. In the end, the Colonel usually reached the same conclusion: as long as he continued to be one of the defenders of Earth, and – more importantly – as long as he continued to be paid, he didn't really care all that much. After all, it was hardly up to him to decide on the issue. O'Neill again chuckled as he remembered the 'other' O'Neill telling him that it would be sooner than he thought that he would be one of the people having a say in the issue of disclosure.

Tabling his thoughts on the matter for another time, O'Neill returned to his historical musings.

_There was a nearly disastrous foothold situation in September 1999 by a previously unknown alien species and an attempted infestation by the Replicators using Thor's flagship in March 2000._

_In April 2002 Earth was attacked by the half-Ascended Goa'uld Anubis using an asteroid whose core was comprised largely of naquadah. Anubis struck again that same year when he destroyed the StarGate using an Ancient device off-world._

_2002 also marked the United States' secret launch of the Prometheus prototype Battle Cruiser as a test bed for all of the new alien technologies acquired. Plans for three new Daedalus Class Battle Carriers, the USS Daedalus, the USS Odyssey, and the USS Apollo began development._

_In March of 2004 Anubis attacked Earth with over thirty ships; this incursion was defeated using the weapons of an Ancient outpost located by SG-1 in Antarctica._

_It was March of 2005 that both Anubis and the Replicators were finally eliminated as threats to this galaxy._

_Earth's prototype Battle Cruiser, the Prometheus, was destroyed during the Ori's three year incursion into the Milky Way Galaxy. The Ori incursion ended when all extra-galactic Ori vessels retreated back to their home galaxy in a defensive pull-back move, after Daniel Jackson used the sangraal, an Ancient device, to obliterate a third of the entire Ori race and significantly drain the total power available to the Ori before being forcibly stopped by the Orici, Adria, who then destroyed the sangraal. Although the SGC was aware that the Ori were not wiped out and could return later, experts projected that, due to their crushing losses, it would be at least centuries, if not millennia, before the Ori even considered attempting another incursion into the Milky Way Galaxy. Sadly, things had not gone well for Daniel after that. A few months later on an off-world mission against some last fanatical Ori hold-outs, he had been mortally wounded. He had apparently escaped death by Ascending again, but he had not been seen or heard from since, so no one really knew Daniel's true fate after that mission._

At the thought of the Ori, a name suddenly crossed O'Neill's mind: Orlin. O'Neill himself had not been present when the (formerly) Ascended Ancient Orlin descended to Earth to help them find a cure to the Ori plague that was loose on the planet at the time, but he had since heard of the incident many times from Samantha Carter and the 'other' O'Neill. Unlike his clone and many other SGC personnel, O'Neill suspected that Orlin's motives had not been as pure as embarking on a simple mission of mercy to the Tau'ri and by extension the Milky Way Galaxy just out of the goodness of his heart. Sure, the Ascended Ancients were famously complacent, but O'Neill thought that even they could not have failed to see the threat that would be posed to them by the Ascended Ori, if the Ori incursion in the Milky Way Galaxy had succeeded. It was likely, in O'Neill's opinion, that the Ancients, recognizing the threat, decided to 'let an Ancient acting on his/her own will' (actually, assign one of their kind) – which happened to be Orlin – help out against the Ori in some way, lest the Ori incursion succeed and the Ancients themselves become threatened. Still, O'Neill had to concede some measure of grudging respect for Orlin for willing to be the one to help them even though it meant he not only had to 'descend' (technically, de-Ascend) as a mortal human child and would quickly lose all of his memory and knowledge – not just the knowledge that came with being an Ascended being, but all of his knowledge of being an Ancient, even his memory of what race he was. Orlin knew before he ever 'descended' that this would happen, yet even knowing the price he would pay he had still done it. Orlin had been willing to defend his people whatever the cost to himself, an attitude befitting a loyal patriot. O'Neill could identify with that kind of attitude. In any case, the Ascended Ancients were definitely egotistical hypocrites, O'Neill thought. They were supposed to be the 'good guys', but they had evidently decided to allow one of their own kind to be sacrificed in the operation, just so they as a race could continue to strut that (annoying) unaffected, superior attitude.

O'Neill reminisced some more over what his 'other' self had told him about Orlin.

_Just a few days after descending, Orlin's desperate efforts to hold on to his Ancient knowledge as long as possible had nearly resulted in his brain becoming irrevocably and significantly damaged. Quick medical tests run on Orlin showed that his neural pathways had begun degenerating rapidly and that the best result he could hope for was to become a severely mentally retarded child – with, of course, none of his life's memories – that would probably have to be institutionalized for life. The worst result was that he could become completely brain-dead or even die outright. By that time, Orlin, despite his best efforts, could no longer be useful: he was dropping things, his mind refused to focus, and his behavior had started becoming erratic – all probably due to his rapidly overloading human brain. After Orlin realized (with more than a little help from SG-1) that there was nothing else he could do, he decided to travel to some distant abandoned Ancient outpost and put himself into stasis in the hope that, sometime in the future, some advanced civilization might discover him and be able to stabilize his mind. The last thing Orlin did before stepping through the StarGate to the Ancient outpost was to apologize for removing and taking with him some of the DHD's crystals, so as to not leave behind any record of where he had dialed to; he explained that the Ancients would not allow the SGC to find the location of the outpost through him, and might act against the SGC if they recovered the address of the outpost from the DHD._

O'Neill snorted. He was a crafty one, was old Orlin. He had used the apology stunt to garner sympathy for himself and to portray himself in a good light at the same time, effectively killing two birds with one stone. The stunt had, indeed, worked well, too well in O'Neill's opinion. The others had actually believed him and thought of his apparent regret as genuine. O'Neill snorted again. He would have thought his clone would have had more sense than that.

Growing a bit bored, O'Neill decided to return to his previous train of thought.

_By 2008, the known or projected threats to Earth had diminished so dramatically that the SGC and the Pentagon were nearly certain that no more unexplainable "incidents" in or around Earth would occur anytime soon. As a result, the then President Hayes took disclosure completely off the table._

_Using this new period of relative calm, the United States decided to increase its presence in the galaxy and concentrate on building up its infant space fleet._

_Armed with advanced technologies gathered from a wide array of advanced alien species the U.S. developed the second generation of ships, with everything from cloaking devices and shields to powerful ion sublight engines to intergalactic hyperdrives, to free standing beaming technology and extremely powerful weapon systems._

_The United States of America had fifteen operational Daedalus Class Battle Carriers by 2009. Three of the Battle Carriers, the USS Daedalus, the USS Ceberus and the USS Phoenix, were assigned to the Pegasus Galaxy to protect the Ancient city-ship Atlantis from the Wraith._

_The first secret Lunar underground construction yard at Tyco was constructed with the aid of Tok'ra crystal tunnel technology and by 2015 production of the Daedalus Class Battle Carrier gradually increased from three per year to twelve per year._

_With construction and expansion efforts non-ceasing, by 2017 the SGA had two additional massive underground Lunar shipyards, located at Copernicus and Kepler. The SGA had also constructed a massive sprawling complex of surface and underground facilities, capable of supporting up to thirty Daedalus Class ships simultaneously, known as Janus Station. Located on and within Saturn's sixth moon, Janus Station's purpose, which it continued to fulfill even now, was to serve as the Sol System's primary combat repair and general refit facility away from the Lunar shipyards._

_Between around 2030 and 2033, Janus Station was expanded to include eight additional smaller facilities to manufacture fighters, cargo ships, and shuttles, along with defense satellites and unmanned combat assault vehicles (U.C.A.V.s), making Janus Station the largest single military complex in the Sol System._

_By 2033, the Fleet consisted of two hundred and forty two Daedalus Class Battle Carriers and nine Explorer Class variants. Twenty eight Battle Carriers were stationed in the Pegasus Galaxy; the rest of the Fleet was spread across the SGA's sixteen colonies, nearly one hundred off-world mining facilities, and several large long-range military bases._

_The current standard Daedalus Class Battle Carrier was over twice the length of the Prometheus prototype and was a lot meaner than most anything the other known races possessed. In fact, the only ship class known to be more powerful than the Daedalus Class was the Asgard's O'Neill Class BattleShip. The Explorer Class variants were basically Daedalus Class Battle Carriers modified with larger hanger bays to handle a greater number and type of shuttles along with redesigned interiors for scientific study and exploration as opposed to strictly military missions. They also carried up to an additional one hundred scientists along with the necessary laboratories and equipment specific to mission parameters. The added space was generated by eliminating the vertical missile silos and the two long range particle weapons (based on the Ancient city-ship Atlantis' defense satellites) that Daedalus Class Battle Carriers possessed._

_Nevertheless, despite this drastically reduced offensive capability, the SGA's Explorer Class Carriers were still heavily armed and designed as warships first and foremost, with each ship carrying twenty-four F-302C BlackHawk Space Superiority Fighters. In addition to several scientific shuttles, each Explorer Class Carrier also carried eight medium class all-purpose assault shuttles whose design was based on the Goa'uld Tel'tak scout ship. Depending on the mission, the Explorer Class Carrier could also be outfitted with up to thirty six U.C.A.V.s that could serve any role from long-range reconnaissance to remote-controlled fighter coverage._

_Offensively, the Explorer Class Carrier was armed with sixty anti-fighter duel-firing rail guns and eighteen larger gauss cannons, twenty-four focused plasma cannons, one hundred short/medium ranged hyperspace torpedoes and thirty-six extremely powerful ion cannons derived from scavenged and reverse-engineered Tollan ion cannons. Additionally each ship carries a classified amount of high yield naquadria enhanced nuclear warheads in reserve along with a full compliment of Ancient drone weapons.  
_

O'Neill grinned. He always liked thinking about the guns available at hand. He supposed that that was one thing he had in common with his clone. _One among many_, he silently reminded himself.

_Defensively, each Explorer Class Carrier had a nine meter thick hull composed of trinium, carbon, and naquadria. All second- and third-generation Daedalus Class ships (including the Explorer variants) were equipped with modified stealth mode generators based on Ancient technology that, when activated in conjunction with hybrid shields based on Asgard and Ancient technologies, could generate a stealth field even Asgard sensors could not penetrate._

_Finally, all Battle Carriers, both the Daedalus and Explorer classes, shared sensor technology developed from Atlantis' long-range sensors, which made sneaking up on them by an enemy nearly impossible._

O'Neill stretched and broke out of his musings to attend to more urgent matters. The SGC had recently put all SGA forces on high alert following the destruction of three Daedalus Class Battle Carriers – in separate locations no less. Each of the three ships had apparently been destroyed so rapidly that they had not had time to advise the SGC of the nature of the event. Analysis of the recovered debris had not yielded any known or putative weapons signatures. Whatever had destroyed these ships had either been some powerful, previously unknown, and probably unpredicted natural phenomenon – a bit doubtful since a natural phenomenon, especially one as exotic and relatively rare as this would have to be, would probably not strike in rapid succession in three distinct star systems light-years apart – or had been an advanced, aggressive enemy with exotic and powerful weaponry completely unknown to the Alliance. Eight of the Alliance's Daedalus Class Battle Carriers formerly stationed in the Pegasus Galaxy had been recalled to the Milky Way Galaxy to enhance their defenses in case the destruction of these three Battle Carriers was caused by a new powerful, advanced enemy.

One thing, O'Neill thought, was an absolute certainty. A serious threat at this time would be most inopportune and unwelcome, but if such a threat was identified as being the cause of the destruction of the three Battle Carriers, the Fleet would likely respond to the unprovoked attacks with an unheard of level of destruction in retaliation. Much of the galaxy had come to respect and even fear the growing might of the Tau'ri, and more often than not potentially hostile aliens were apt to avoid any kind of provocation out of fear of a swift and decisive response. This hard-earned reputation was essential to the success of the SGA thus far, and had to be maintained at all costs. Hence, if a hostile faction was responsible for these unprovoked attacks, reprisal with military force would be essential. The SGA was just a few decades away from having a true empire amongst the stars, and nothing would be allowed to stand in its way.

**TBC… in CHAPTER 2: The Pieces Fall Into Place**


End file.
